This present invention relates to an emblem which is designed to facilitate embroidery of the emblem to a substrate with the use of an emblem having a pressure sensitive adhesive layer for temporary registry of the emblem on the substrate during embroidery. The invention also relates to a method for embroidery stitching an emblem to a substrate.
Emblems such as letters and numbers having embroidered edges have become widely used in many areas. Emblems have in particular found great use in the garment industry, specifically for sports uniforms, jerseys and the like. In sports, such embroidered emblems are used to identify player and team numbers, names and logos of sponsors. Embroidered emblems have also found use in conjunction with souvenir apparel or simply for decorative purposes.
In some instances, the emblem is held in place for embroidery using pins. In other cases, a hoop is placed around the emblems to secure the emblem in desired location for embroidery. One problem associated with these embroidery securement methods is that during embroidery, the emblem may distort or shift causing the embroidery to be misapplied or imprecisely placed. Moreover, such embroidery techniques are cumbersome and overly time consuming. Accordingly, there exists a need for a simplified method for emblem embroidery on a substrate. There is also a need for a method which facilitates the precise application of the embroidery of an emblem to a substrate.
An object of the present invention is to provide an emblem which can be readily embroidered to a substrate without distortion of the emblem during the embroidery.
Another object of the invention is to provide a method for embroidery and heat-sealing an emblem to a substrate, wherein the method is simple and efficient.
An additional object of the invention is to provide an emblem which is designed to facilitate precise embroidery of an emblem to a substrate.
In carrying out the above objects of the invention, a method of embroidering and heat-sealing an emblem to a substrate, comprises the steps of providing a fabric layer; coating one face of the fabric layer with a thermoplastic adhesive; coating the thermoplastic adhesive with a pressure sensitive adhesive that allows the thermoplastic adhesive to penetrate through the pressure sensitive adhesive coating upon the application of heat; covering the pressure sensitive adhesive coating with a releasable protective carrier sheet; cutting at least through the fabric and adhesive coatings in the configuration of a desired emblem; removing the emblem from the carrier sheet; positioning the emblem on the substrate in a desired location, such that the pressure sensitive adhesive coating is in contact with the substrate; pressing the emblem against the substrate to temporarily register the pressure sensitive adhesive coating to the substrate; embroidering the emblem to the substrate without distortion of the emblem; and applying heat towards the substrate so that the thermoplastic adhesive coating penetrates through the pressure sensitive adhesive coating to affix the emblem to the substrate.
The emblem""s pressure sensitive adhesive coating allows the emblem to temporarily register on the underlying substrate, thereby eliminating any problems with gathering or distortion of the emblem during the embroidery process. Furthermore, as a result of the pressure sensitive adhesive coating, the emblem can be temporarily registered to prevent shifts of the emblem during embroidery, ensuring accurate embroider stitching of the emblem to the substrate.
The present invention further discloses a laminate for heat-sealing emblems to a substrate, comprising a fabric layer coated on one side with a thermoplastic adhesive; a pressure sensitive adhesive coating the thermoplastic adhesive coating to provide temporary registry of the emblem to a desired substrate and facilitate embroidery without emblem distortion; the thermoplastic adhesive coating is capable of penetrating through the pressure sensitive adhesive coating upon the application of heat to affix the emblem to the substrate; and a carrier sheet overlying the pressure sensitive adhesive coating to provide a releasable covering for the pressure sensitive adhesive coating and prevent any significant reduction in tackiness.
The present invention further provides an emblem design to facilitate embroidery and heat sealing of an emblem to a substrate, comprising a fabric layer cut to the configuration of a desired emblem; a thermoplastic adhesive coating one face of the fabric layer; a pressure sensitive adhesive coating the thermoplastic adhesive which upon the application of pressure thereon allows temporary registry of the emblem to the substrate and facilitates embroidery without emblem distortion; and the pressure sensitive adhesive allows the thermoplastic adhesive to penetrate therethrough upon the application of heat.